A/N: So sorry, I was tied up! Next chapter up soon, I promise!

Chapter 4: Fire and Night

Saix wasn't himself—he was wearing the same shirt as mine, black, tight over his chest—he raised his claymore to me, growling, tense. I stepped back. It was all too much handle… I was going to be erased by my best friend, but why was he doing this? Why, Isa, why?

I felt the fire in my chest boil upwards, shuddering like a volcano. "Saix, why're you-?" I was cut off when he lunged for me, swinging his Claymore skillfully. With the split second opening I summoned my chakrams and blocked back his attack. His next parry sent me sailing into the wall, collapsing to the floor a crumpled heap. I may have taken hits before, but this still hurt. He charged again as I worked my way to my knees, growling like a savage.

Thinking quickly I chucked a chakram at him, forcing him to dodge and break his attack. I rushed him and barreled into his chest, knocking him back; I caught my weapon as it spiraled back at me, "Saix, don't do this!"

Too bad he was beyond reasoning. He jumped to his feet, swinging his Claymore around. His distant glare pierced into me, grip tightening. Then, he exploded with power afflicted by Kingdom Hearts hanging just outside the window. His facial scar stretched, his hair stood on end, his fangs sharpened, his weapon expanded. He had gone Berserk—he was going to do everything in his ability to destroy me.

Why would he do this me? No… Xemnas must have done something to him!

I was going to have to fight back if I planned on surviving, or even knocking some sense into him. The fire building in my chest erupted—walls of flames blasted out from me in the form of an eight-point star, scorching the floor. The heat waves coiled around me, forming a searing, maned lion that reared up and roared at Saix.

Saix's crystal-blue energy lurched, molting into a bulked, snarling wolf that howled back at me. He raised his claymore, I lifted my chakrams, and then we lunged at each other, power exploding in our wake. Our weapons clashed together, on par. The beats above us raged, biting and clawing at one another. We forced each other away but wasted no time in striking again. This time we didn't break, a test to see who could push who back first.

"Give…" I started feeling my surge become too much to hold back any longer, "Give me… Give me back my friend!" Saix faltered. "GIVE ME BACK ISA!" My lion's jaws slammed closed around the wolf's neck, tearing off its head with ease as my power overwhelmed Saix. There was a flash of white that blinded me and concealed my next actions, our powers self-destructing.

All was still for a moment, my senses rushing back to me. My fingers were closed around Saix's wrists, pinning him against the cracked wall. "Isa, come back to me…" The cataclysm almost tore apart the entire room, cracking the window panes and the walls. The floor was nothing by a crater, scorched by my flames. "Isa… please… Remember me. I'm your best friend!"

"Best… friend?" He uttered under his breath, eyes half-closed and still painfully distant.

"Yes…" I lowered my voice to a mutter, almost a whisper, "Don't you remember? I don't know what Xemnas did to you, but that doesn't change the fact you are and always have been my best friend. Those trivial red sunsets, all the sea-salt ice cream we ate until we got sick, the long days wasted making mischief and the even longer nights spent in the holding cell afterwards?" I reiterated his name, his real name—the one from before the darkness and the lies and the black cloaks and Xemnas… "Isa… Isa… Please remember. Come back to me!"

Saix groaned, his head rolling as he fell back in consciousness. "L-Lea…" His golden orbs snapped open, "Oh, Lea… I'm so sorry."

He was back. Finally, he was back! "Isa!" I was relieved. As I receded away from him the familiar feeling of dread washed over me. Instinctively I ducked as Xemnas's Ethereal Blades crossed in the air where my head was only a split second ago. In response my leg reared back and nailed him in the chest, knocking him into Xaldin close behind. Xigbar replaced him, the nose of his Arrowgun striking the center of my sternum… and he pulled the trigger.

It clicked empty.

I didn't have enough time to ponder what had just happened. Saix grabbed me from behind and dragged me into Corridor of Darkness. The blackness sealed shut on Xigbar's smirk and Xemnas reaching for us in vain.

The darkness hurt this time. My arms felt raw, my eyes dried up from the brush of bitter, stale air that tasted emotionless and rank. A crack split open before us, light flooding into the shadow. The break split apart like a jigsaw puzzle, pieces falling away into the exit.

We stumbled out into a familiar luminescent foyer, the corridor shutting quietly behind us. Saix exhaled a sigh of relief, "Wow, we must be more accustomed to the darkness then we thought…" He faced me, furrowing his eyebrows, "Care to explain what happened back there?"

"You tell me! You apologized and the world didn't implode! Wait, maybe it did!" I checked myself for injuries, "No, maybe we're dead and we don't know it!"

He shoved me, "Shut up you idiot! You're voice grates on my nerves! You're lucky the darkness didn't destroy either of us on the way here!" His voice faltered, and I could tell his Berserk mode from before was fading. My chest felt lighter since exploding with power I forgot I even had, but my muscles stung after taking bashes from his Claymore. "Lea, lead me to Naminé. You know where she is in here, right?"

Oh, so that's where we were. But still… "Don't avoid the current situation, Isa!"

"This is the current situation, Lea!" Oh, so now we were down to using our Somebody names, huh? I resorted to raking my fingers through my blazing red hair while he just pinched the bridge of his nose. "OK, OK… Look, all I remember is darkness, given Xemnas probably tried to brain wash me or something… but when I woke up you were standing over me and I realized the room was literally a war zone. So now it's your turn."

"That tells me nothing. Xemnas said that you were supposed to erase me, so I fought you back in hopes I would at least make it out in two pieces, and well-ah, here we are! Wait, why are we here again?"

"You mentioned before that Naminé could help us, and Yuffie said she was here. Take me to her if you know where she is."

I quirked an eyebrow, "You aren't seriously considering putting us to sleep, are you?"

"We don't have a choice," He dead-panned, "I don't ever want to erase you, Lea. I especially can't bare the thought of what the Organization could do to you. After I saw the destruction of our fight I knew we must have released the full extents of our powers, and we have never done that before in Xemnas's presence. If he doesn't kill us he may keep us as his personal slaves, and the last thing we need is him using us to destroy everything that so much as looks the wrong way at him."

It was ironic, really. Saix, Xemnas's faithful follower and second in command, was actually on my side for once. My lips ebbed into a smirk, which faded instantly. No, that only meant Saix was still himself after all this time—choosing me instead of Kingdom Hearts—and I had been the one pushing him away after all this time… with Roxas, Xion… "You've been protecting me." Whoops, didn't mean to say that out loud.

Saix had his back to me, admiring the simple décor of the blank room. He didn't look at me when I let that comment slip. "What do you mean?"

I gave in, letting my thoughts spill like a glass of water knocked over by some careless person's elbow, "After we became Nobodies I thought you had changed… like you had been pushing me away simply because our friendship didn't matter anymore; that only Kingdom Hearts counted. We… I started to wonder what had gone wrong with us, so I guess I just gave up and found a friend in Roxas and Xion." Saix glanced at me over his shoulder, gaze steady. "I slowly began to realize Xemnas had assigned me to take care of Roxas, and it was a plus for you because you knew I would make friends with him, not that I ever knew why. I figured it was because you thought I could use someone, since you weren't going to be there for me anymore. Then you saved me from Xemnas, and now I'm so confused as to where your loyalties lie I'm going crazy! And after what just happened… I wonder if you've really just done everything to protect me."

Saix smiled, not smirked but for once truly smiled, and I saw a reflection of Isa in him. "I knew you'd figure it out one day. Lea, I realized that if Xemnas questioned our loyalties to each other compared to our loyalties to him, he would do everything to separate us. Second in command, remember? So, I thrust Roxas in your face and prayed you would move on. It was safer for us if we weren't friends anymore… but then you failed the mission, and all hell broke loose. So the appropriate thing to say is 'You've been trying to protect me'."

I was speechless for a moment, giving myself a mental kick in the ass. "I must be the worst friend in the world…"

"No, no," He wafted his hand at me, "It's quite alright. You couldn't do a thing about it, so don't go blaming yourself."

"So you really haven't change, huh? And you actually don't mind me calling you Isa, you just tried to avoid it because that was part of your plan, right?"

He shrugged, "Well, we've both changed. We're Nobodies now, Lea; we'll never be the same Isa and Lea we've come to know." I noticed the twinge of sadness in his voice, but dismissed it. He was right, we were Nobodies, so we couldn't feel, and… "But we're certainly not part of the Organization anymore, so Isa and Lea we will be."

"Touching."

We whirled around to face the man across the room, footfalls echoing off the too white walls as he advanced towards us. Saix—I still don't know whether to address him as Isa or not—pulled me behind him protectively, as always, his Claymore materializing in his hand. I summoned out my chakrams, prepared to follow through with anything he attempted to do.

"What is the Organization doing here?" The man spat his question, circling around us, "Leave before I put you out of your misery!"

"We're here to see Naminé," I announced, "Xion has come here once before seeking her help, so now we're doing the same thing."

"Xion came here trying to find out who she is!" The man snapped, heading towards the staircase carved into the wall nearby, "I knew she couldn't be trusted! She makes up lies, LIES I tell you! And then you two come back here seeking Naminé! I will not have it!"

"I was the one who came before," I admitted, stepping forward, "Xion was here to seek, Naminé, yes, so I brought her back to the Organization. I assure you she will not bother you again"—especially after what Xemnas plans to do to her, I hope Roxas will be OK—"But Xion isn't why we're here. The Organization is trying to erase us."

"Likely excuse!" The man barked, stomping up the steps, "Be gone with you!"

"Please!" I shouted, my voice bouncing off the boxed room, "We need her help!" He paused, arms folded behind his back. Finally he emerged from the darkness of the stairs and stormed back over to us. "Please, we just want to-"

"Save me the trouble, Axel," He seethed, "I have no business with you. Naminé told me about the events in Castle Oblivion, so I cannot trust you."

"Let's just go, Isa," I said, defeated, "We don't have time."

"That's exactly why we're staying," Saix hissed.

"Wait, Isa you say?" The man's eyes widened, "So then you must be Lea! Yes, yes I remember you two good-for-nothing teenagers who caused so many problems for me!" Great, there was definitely no way he was going to help us now. "Yes, I remember you clear as day!" He seemed ecstatic, "I am DiZ, my name used to be Ansem the Wise before my apprentices betrayed me…" Oh, so that's who he is. "Mm… I am disappointed to know that you are part of the Organization as well, those back-stabbing, two-timing, murderous, delusional-!"

"OK!" Saix interrupted, fangs poking through, "OK! We get the point! Look, we are not part of the Organization anymore, and we need your help because Xemnas is trying to erase us!"

"Fleeing, are you Saix and Axel?" DiZ inquired. I knew he had probably learned our names from stalking our Organization, "I can offer you no sanctum here! Now go!"

"Please!" I tried again, "We just need Naminé to put us to sleep! We're just trying to survive, and Naminé is our only answer!"

"Survive? You don't even exist!" We fell quiet. DiZ abruptly went for the steps again, steam rising from his shoulders. I stared at Saix expectantly, aware that he was about to give up as well. His Claymore disappeared in unison with my Chakrams. "What's with the hold up?" DiZ stated from the steps, "Follow me you blasted lunatics!"

"Look which pot is calling the kettle black," Saix uttered, ushering me to follow behind him. We tailed DiZ into one of the rooms upstairs, where the white witch sat at a table scribbling into her notepad. She glanced up at us, expression unreadable.

"Naminé," DiZ said slowly, "Meet Saix and Axel."

"I know who Axel is," she responded, smiling, "I told you about him… but I do not know his friend. Hello, I'm Naminé. What can I help you with?"

"They claim to be on the run from the Organization," DiZ explained before I could even register her question, "They say that only you can help them escape being erased by putting them to sleep. Is this true?"

"It could be," she admonished, "They would probably drop off the face of the map, if you know what I mean. How long do you want to be put to the sleep for?"

"Until Sora wakes up," Saix answered, "We need his help to bring down the Organization."

"YOU LIE!" DiZ exclaimed. This time I gladly ducked behind Saix. "You're going to earn Sora's trust and kill him! I know what you're up to!"

Naminé giggled, "Oh, DiZ… leave them alone. They won't hurt Sora." She returned to her picture, replacing her blue crayon for a red one, "Sora will awaken soon, once I fix his memories. His process has come to a temporary halt." She set her work aside and stood, soothing down her skirt, "Follow me to the back room."

DiZ groaned, "I don't trust them, Naminé!"

"It's fine, DiZ," she assured him and lead us into another room, smaller but filled with empty pods. "Many of these are the machines I use to manipulate memories. Some are prototypes designed by DiZ himself. Here, these two should do." We approached the empty cocoons, doors lifted like they were expecting us.

"So, you're the one manipulating Sora's memories?" Saix figured, "Why has he come to a stop?"

"I don't know, there's something interfering," She bit her nail, "I… can't figure out what it is."

"Xion…" Saix uttered, earning my outright attention, "That's why… It's not just Roxas she's absorbing…" He caught my gaze, "Axel, Xion has to be destroyed."

"We can't, Saix!" I shot back, "That will just give the Organization another opportunity to erase us!" He stared at me, dumbfounded, like I had something he wasn't expecting at all. "Plus… If we kill her then that means…"

"I told you from the beginning," Saix remarked, "It was always going to be a difficult decision no matter what happened. Either she gets killed or he does. But it's not our place to decide, we will have to wait and see."

"Xion," Naminé almost made her thumb bleed from biting so hard, "She has to be erased… Why don't you do it then?"

"We can't do it," Saix repeated firmly, "If we do the Organization will catch us. That will be counter-productive and not end well for anyone." Finally he sighed, "Please, just put us to sleep and wake us up before Sora—if he ever wakes up."

Naminé exhaled, "Fine, as you wish. Unfortunately I will have to erase your memories of me, like I have been doing with Sora and his friends. He does not remember the Organization, nor you Axel for that matter. I do not wish for him to remember the Castle Oblivion incident, nor me, so please say nothing. I will erase your memories of Oblivion and of me for his sake. I am sorry… please forgive me."

I stared at Saix, "I don't have a problem with any of it. I don't need those memories anyway!" After all the missions I've done I could sure use a week of rest.

Saix frowned, "Well, alright then. If that's what you want, Lea, I say we go for it."

I nodded. Naminé pointed to the first pod. Stomach twisting in my worry about Xion, Roxas, and maybe even Sora, I stepped into the pod and faced the witch in white, Saix at her side, "OK. I'm ready… Isa, one more thing before I go… while you're asleep try to figure out why the sun sets in red, alright?"

"Got it memorized," He agreed, smirking.

I laughed, "Thank you for this, Naminé," let the pod close around me, and slipped off into darkness.

Now, I just hoped we would wake up again.